if you haven’t heard about this.. after the5 thousand dollar bread, this is another viral toast going around in china.. just one proofing.. the texture is so irresistible
听说了么？no? 继 5千块老式面包后，内地又来一份万人迷的超软拉丝吐司。。组织令人无语。。无语问苍天。。很牛很牛。。
做吧！

– many thanks once again to PF Deasy Fredericka, member of Facebook group Happy Kitchen… She painstakingly translated the recipe into bahasa and selflessly shared this for the benefit of more Indonesian readers… The world just got happier with people like her 😀

– i used 2 different bread flour ~ 92g casarin flour (protein level 11.6%) and 168g canadian very strong bread flour (protein level 14.9%). no particular reason why the weird weightage ~ i was only trying to use up the left over casarin flour
我用了两种不同的面包粉 ～ 92克凯萨琳高筋面粉（蛋白质含量 11.6%）和加拿大特强面包粉（蛋白质含量 14.9%）。面粉的用量没太大意义～只是想一次过把家里剩余的凯萨琳高筋面粉报销掉

– i used 180g hydration ~ 76g egg + 104g milk. you can use whipping cream for this portion as well. if weight of whipping cream is 80g, you can omit butter. UPDATE: there had been questions about this portion. The total hydration needed for this bread varies between 160-180g and this depends on your flour, and climate. so what is egg + milk = 180g? meaning, use ONE XL egg (which is about 70g ~ and i mean net weight), then top up the weight for it to measure to 160 or 180g. you can use a mixture of milk or whipping cream or either one. if you use entirely whipping cream, and say your egg is only 56g in net weight, then it is 56g + 124g whipping cream = 180g. in this case, since whipping cream is more than 80g, please omit butter in the recipe. but if you are using (for example) 56g egg + 100g milk +24g whipping cream, then please include butter. i hope this helps
我用了 180克液体～76克蛋液＋104牛奶。您也可在这部份使用淡奶油。如淡奶油含量高达 80克，黄油可免去。注：很多网友对液体有疑问。这么说：液体所需用量共约 160-180克之间。需要多少，视各家面粉和天气。液体重量＝蛋液＋牛奶重量。鸡蛋，我建议使用超大号，大概 70克（净重）。这蛋液重量，在倒上牛奶或淡奶油后的重量应该是 160-180克。您可用牛奶或淡奶油，或两者混着用。打个比喻：如您家鸡蛋净重 是 56克，那需倒入 124克淡奶油。如果完全用淡奶油，那请将食谱中的黄油部份去除（因淡奶油部份已超过于 80克）。如您用 56克蛋液＋100克牛奶＋24克淡奶油，因淡奶油部份少于 80克，那黄油就必须加入

– you MUST achieve the window pane stage when kneading. if you don’t, you will not get this texture
揉面团必须达到拓展状。如果没揉至拓展状，就准备和拉丝说拜拜哈

The total hydration should be btw 160 to 180g depending on ur climate and flour. You can use an egg, where i.suggested an XL egg, with a combi of milk.and whipping cream or just one of them. If you decide to replace milk totally with whipping cream, the total hydration STILL has to be 160 ~ 180g. When i mention 80g whipping cream, it means if the substitution is up to or more than 80g whipping cream, you can omit butter. But if weight of whipping cream used is less than 80g, u STILL have to use butter. E.g. 76g egg + 70g milk + 34g whipping cream, yes keep butter in recipe.

Helen Kim (November 11, 2015)

Hai Victoria, I have try your killer bread yesterday it was so fantastic sooo soft like cotton will keep this recipe 4 future use, I made 1 1/2 till now still very soft n nice, anyway billion thanks 4 sharing

candy ong (November 13, 2015)

During initial mixing, speed 1. When all ingredients are mixed, speed 2 till i get elastic dough. Incorporate butter, same process. But during final kneading, it will be a mix of speed 2 and 4. Kneading will never exceed 20mins for me

Cynthia (November 12, 2015)

Hi, I\’m not too familiar with KW. I use.kitchenaid. general rule of thumb, first stage abt 10mins. U should get a nice and silky dough b4 incorporating butter. If.you got all ur factors right, i.e. hydration especially, it should take just another 10 mins. Toggle btw a low and medium speed to get it right. The ultimate dough should not be sticky. Hope this helps

Hi Mk, i did not take a pic of window pane stage of my dough, but basically you can stretch it with your palm and see through light. U do not want to overdo it though. You can google for such pictures. You can find it easily. Yes, always grease bread pan LIGHTLY

Mk (November 16, 2015)

I am proofing the dough now need it\’s growing pretty slow…wanthe to ask how long is the proofing time and saw tat u have answered the question earlier. I am in Singapore and is proofing it in the oven, oven off, and with 2 bowl\’s of warm water…you have mentioned your proofing time is 2-3hrs during winter, not sure if it\’s in the proofer. As least it ease my mind, to my yeast is not growing, just proof half an hour…I will be patience and wait for another hour plus..

Hi Edith and Victoria, I tried to make buns with this recipe but it turns out pretty hard. Hehehe.
I think it\’s all because i overbaked the buns (I baked it for 25 minutes).
How long do we need to bake buns actually?
I will try this recipe again tonight. Yay!

It really depends on your oven. 25mins worked well for my buns. I suggest you give the internal temp a check at 12th min or when top has begun browning nicely and decide from there the baking time . Internal temp should be about 96 degrees C. Hope this help

Kemiyeong (November 25, 2015)

Hi, I am addressing your concerns all in one reply. Do you mean you have added a total of 60g butter ? This is not the original recipe anymore and you have actually converted it into nearly a brioche recipe. To experience the real texture and taste, I do not recommend deviating far from what\’s stated above. Please do not use eggs in entirety, it\’s not gonna work that way. If you do not like milk, please use water but this alters flavor. Butter (also) contributes to the flavor of the bread and plays a significant role in texture control.

Blumiz (November 25, 2015)

Thanks for the recipe. I have tried and I notice that the more I knead, the more sticky the dough gets. Is this suppose to be like that? Should I sprinkle more flour on my table top as I knead to reduce the stickyness ?

You may have needed lesser hydration. Did you machine or hand knead? If machine kneaded and gets too sticky, try handling dough with lightly greased palms and knead it. It should come together. If you need to add flour, that means you have to reduce liquid in future.

LynY (November 26, 2015)

Hi, I use KA. Speed 1 to mix ingredients together. You should get a nice silky dough in ten mins if your hydration factor is right. Incorporate butter and knead another 10 mins, first on speed 1, then toggle between speed 2 and 4. Total kneading time did not exceed 20 mins

LC (November 26, 2015)

Hi can I ask. Is it possible if I knead and proof, and refrigerated the dough and bake tomorrow morning? ( around 18-20 hours in refrigerator. If so, do i have to punch down once and then bring it out to room temperature tomorrow before baking?

Happy (November 27, 2015)

Hi is there any sequence when you put the ingredients into your kitchenaid stand mixer? eg put wet ingredients first, then dry ingredients on top. dig a well in the flour and add in instant yeast. then cover it. next put salt and sugar in opposite side?

Hi, if mixing and kneading immediately, all dry ingredients can be whisked together, then create a well in between to pour in wet ingredients. Butter always come at a later stage once the above comes together. Some people like to prepare the ingredients beforehand and if so, salt and yeast should be placed apart in the mixer bowl and mixed together when beginning to knead. Hope this helps.

Cecilia (December 6, 2015)

Hi!
Thanks so much for sharing. Been trying so many recipes but never succeed on first trial. This is the first trial for me for this recipe and my husband and kids love it (they are not bread lovers).
Thanks so much!!!!
Definitely a keeper. Will try bake tomorrow again. Thanks.for renewing my bread making passion hahahaha
Cecilia

Cecilia (August 4, 2016)

Hi Victoria
Yesterday I tried using wholemeal flour, so its 50g wholemeal flour and 210g bread flour. I used 42g egg n balance all whipping cream so butter wasnt use.
The bread crumb turned out dense though soft. The interesting part is when I tear e bread apart in between the “swiss rolls” the crumb texture was nice cottony, but when I slice the bread nxt day, I c e dense crumb texture. Do you know what could be the likely reason for this?
Thanks lots!
Cecilia

Joanne (December 7, 2015)

Hi, very keen to try making this. Always didn\’t turn out well whenever making bread or pizza crust. So bought new yeast and am gonna try this out. I dun Hv BM and am going to hand knead. How long and what the steps of hand kneading? Pls advice. Thks!!

I have not tried hand kneading though I have been told by some that they have done it for this recipe. Just knead till window pane stage and time depends on your strength and kneading skills. Good luck.

Michelle (December 8, 2015)

Hi

I am so tired of trying, total 10 times. Failed. I follow the recipe exactly but each time the dough too sticky, despite I use 160g hydration. There is 1 day I knead for 4 hrs using my kitchen aid, but still get a hard bread. Sigh

That\’s good to know. Yes many has made into buns with success and I intend to do the same when I return home 🙂 I cannot comment on proofing time due to different climate. But proof till double in size. Hope this helps

Hello Nicky, I\’m always happy to hear of successes and I can even feel your excitement here! Ok for sweeter loaf, you can use sugar anywhere from. 45g to even 60g! Cranberry wise, for purely dotted effect, minimally about 25g and or as much as you want. Usually, what I do is I add as I go. When I feel the dough looks pretty fairly distributed, I stop. Of course, remember to plump up those berries with hot water before using 😉 have fun

Chloe (December 16, 2015)

Hi Victoria. Finally found time to make this bread. It is indeed a killer toast! Very soft and cottony texture. Thanks for looking out for non mandarin readers like me. Much appreciated. Take care chloe

Katherine (January 20, 2016)

Hi Katherine, yes, suggest you use bread maker or a KA mixer. i had readers who used hands to knead. i think they kneaded till 40 mins, not quite to window pane, but they still got a soft bread. it really depends on one\’s kneading skills. I achieved mine in 20 mins with a mixer

Hi Lina, yes you can increase sugar to make it a sweet loaf. Yes you can add milk powder, but adjust hydration accordingly. Milk powder should be an addition, not substitution, yes, you can use a mix of bread and cake flour but the texture will be different, it will be softer (More cake like) as compared to a bready texture. Hydration will need to be adjusted accordingly

Elaine Q (February 27, 2016)

Thanks for reply. One more question. Is this hand knead or machine knead and how long does it take? I used my KA mixer to knead for 20 mins and it was still sticky on the hand so I spread some flour on the board to roll. The texture did not turn satisfactory. Dry and crumby and a lot of holes.

Hi Elaine, i used KA mixer. try oiling your palm very lightly. the dough should be easier to handle. flouring usually result in a hard/denser loaf. if you have a lot of holes in the loaf, it means you are not punching your dough down and swiss rolling properly. too much air pockets result in \”holey\” bread. Crumbly means you did not reach a window pane stage post kneading. this is just my 5 cents worth based on my own bread making experience.

if oiling your palm lightly still results in a very sticky dough, like batter, then you should try reducing liquid in the future. your flour is probably not absorbing as much liquid as other flour. hope this helps

Mai (March 13, 2016)

Hi Victoria..i tried this recipe for the 1st time but i didn\’t get the texture like yours. Mine was reasonably soft but with some holes unlike yours which are clean. This is my 2nd attempt at baking a loaf so i\’m quite happy with the results though its not perfect. Can i add more sugar & chocolate emulco if i want it to be a sweet loaf? Thank you 🙂

Hello Mai, when Swiss rolling your dough, try to press out the trapped air bubbles so you get a less \”holey \” loaf. That should do the job. Yes! Feel free to twist this basic recipe with additions ! I have seen so many Flavours out there now and love to hear your own creation soon. 🙂

Mai (March 14, 2016)

Thanks Victoria for the tips! I actually didn\’t do any rolling. Hahah like i said this was only my 2nd attempt at bread making hence i was quite lost with all the terms tbh. My 1st attempt was a total flop as i just dived right into it without any research 🙂 Pardon my silly-ness. I will try again soon! Thank you so much 🙂

i\’ve tried your recipe, it\’s totally simple and soft, love it so much !! even i often making this, not easy to take a photo because noone can leave it after bakes. But sure, after this easter holiday, i should make one and posting on my blog. Thanks fos share, victoria 😉

Cathy (March 27, 2016)

vin (April 5, 2016)

Hi Victoria,

i followed correctly all ur steps n got a window pane. But then I spread cinnamon sugar before rolling into Swiss roll like..After baking bread can be eaten but not soft at all. Hard n dry. When. I was rolling the dough, I knew it is gonna be hard. My liquid incl. of egg is ur max. 180g. Where did I go wrong ? Going to try your steamed Cantonese brown cake today. Wish me luck. Is it like Mai Lai Ko?

Hi Vin, I guess your dough did not reach the window pane stage then. Was just surprised if you get that stage, how it would turn out hard (unless you floured too much during shaping or over bake). And no I haven\’t gotten to making the ma Lai ko but you can try this link for egg sponge cake https://bakingintotheether.com/2014/06/27/baked-marble-ji-dan-gao-大理石鸡蛋糕/

Samuel (April 11, 2016)

As a beginner, you may like to buy a bread machine which kneads and Bakes bread. If you have an oven at home, you can use it to knead , proof your dough then cut up to your desired shape and bake in oven. If budget is not a concern you may like to get a mixer . I use kitchenaid. But do visit your local electronics store and see what is available. You need to know your choices. I hope this helps

apple (April 14, 2016)

There are many reasons to why it may not rise as tall. Provided your yeast hasn\’t expired, it could range from kneading, proofing environment, time of proofing, to the way you grease your loaf pan etc. it\’s difficult for me to pinpoint where the problem may have tried. This recipe had high success rates insofar, so you may like to try again

hello Ann, thanks for trying. keeping bread is quite a challenge isn\’t it? one of my readers has managed to keep it soft for 3 days and she resides in Singapore.. am trying to hear from her (yet to though). i stay in Beijing, a very dry climate ~ i adopt quite a Kiasu attitude ~ first, and i\’m sure you know this ~ slice only when you wanna eat. second, i cling wrap, then i place it into a ziplock. and then into a bread bag (bought this bag in UK that helps to keep bread fresh). sounds like more than KS? well.. i\’m not willing to let it go dry and hard by next day truly. some people keep it in tupperware and it seem to work totally for them. to be frank, not for me.. not sure if it\’s because my tupperware isn\’t too sealed. hope this helps and btw, you can reuse those cling wrap and ziplock for your next loaf of bread 🙂

Orangebb (May 11, 2016)

Hi victoria. Thanks for ur recipe! I use kitchenaid too. I find that after bread dough kneading for 20mins, my KA is hotter n start to wobble more. I wonder is it the machine overwork or its the dough.

Hi ~ at what speed do you use when kneading dough? i know there are some instructions in the net that kneads dough with speed 4 and even 6. please refrain from doing that as it really exhaust your machine. i normally just knead at speed 1 and 2. if speed 4 is ever used, it will never be more than 30 seconds. Your dough sounds a bit dry to me as well and the machine is working very hard to knead it. also, check the screw that attaches both the top and body part of the mixer. if you have been overworking your machine, that screw may have dislodge resulting in a wobbling machine. i\’m stating all these presumably you have not made any substitutions to the ingredients and got the hydration needed for your dough right. hence my answer to your question is, \”both\”. if you need more answers on KA, suggest you contact them directly as i am only advising based on personal experience

Ling (Instagram;peacefairy88) (April 23, 2016)

Hi..Victoria 🙂 how Are you doing? I tried this recipe but my bread turn so hard and didn\’t rise at all..any idea why? It is because the dough not enough liquids or…. ? Please help me solve my problem…
Thanks a lot
Really appreciate that
Ling

Hello Ling, has your yeast expired? I know it sounds like a \”…\” Question but it may be worth checking it is still good. Secondly I hope you did not kill the yeast with overly warm water or hot proofing environment . You mentioned the dough was hard – did you knead till window pane stage? If not you will not get a soft bread. The dough should be very silky and pliable , not hard like you even have challenges sealing seams. If it \”did not rise at all\”, it\’s most likely yeast and proofing conditions . If it didn\’t rise that much and is dense, it just means more hydration or insufficient kneading. Not sure which of this it may be? But do give this winner recipe another try again 🙂 am sure the next loaf will not be a disappointment

Ling (April 24, 2016)

Hi Victoria.. Thanks a lot for replying me.. Actually I live in NYC. When I made the bread the air was so dry.. Probably that conditions can happened too..right. I will make it again. Thank for the advice. Really appreciate that.
Love
Ling

Ling (April 24, 2016)

Hi.. Victoria..continued to this page…😀 my yeast didn\’t expired at all..I just bought it when I made it. I kneaded that dough more than 30 minutes still can\’t get that window pane stage, I dunno why.. 😪
Thanks a lot

Kathy (August 5, 2019)

yi xuan (April 24, 2016)

Hi victoria. I have tried your recipe. I tried suing my kitchen aids to knead my dough but after 3 and more hours and it didn\’t turn out window pane. What could do wrong with my dough? Thanks for guiding me.

Hello yixuan, how long were you kneading it for? The fastest I heard was 12 mins, and longest 30 mins. I take between 20-30 mins, using mostly speed one and two. I think you need to adjust your hydration, meaning liquid level. Flour and environment affects how much water needs to be used. If you have a very sticky batter, try reducing liquid content, if dough feels tough and have lines, then you needs to increase hydration. You should be able to tell usually by ten mins of kneading. Do give it a go ahead… After you get the hydration right, you will have lots of fun changing flavors just as many of my readers are doing now 🙂 don\’t give up ! Jia you

yi xuan (April 25, 2016)

Hi Victoria. Thank you for your quick reply. The dough only rise to 50% and the outer layer is very hard. The inner layer is only a little soft only, very dry. So I guess I need to increase the hydration of the bread?

Some dough stick at the bottom and I tried adjusting the height of the KA mixer to be lower but it will touch the bowl….

It\’s normal the dough sticks at bottom. In order not to overwork your machine, take it out at last few mins and handknead with lightly oiled Palm. If your dough never reached window pane prior to proofing and you can hardly seal seams, yes increase hydration. If your proofing environment is coolish, it may mean you need a little more time than others to rise it. Key is: window pane. If you are there, then just allow the dough to proof . FYI , I once proofed a dough for 7 hours 😉 in a 13 degrees C kitchen. Some people like to leave it in the oven with a pot of hot water. I didn\’t do that as slow proofing allowed flavour to sink in (time permitting). However, if you have been proofing for hours and when pressing gently into the dough , it feels like you are about to deflate a balloon n yet the dough looks low, then you can say bye bye to a fluffy bread. These are just some of my bread making experiences – so do continue trying but enjoy the process . 🙂

Yi Xuan (April 25, 2016)

Hi Victoria. I am eager to try baking another loaf tonight. Can I confirm that the milk must be full cream? Is fresh milk considered full cream? Will the milk make a difference in the bread texture? Thanks!

quandocuando (May 1, 2016)

Dear Vic, yesterday was my 2nd attempt of your killer\’s recipe. Instead of instant dry yeast, I used active dry yeast and it turned out just like what you have in picture above.
Thank you so much for your recipe cos these days bakery\’s bread to cut corners they used cheap flour and some added omega 3 oil to their bread. I am not used to them cos I am still of the old school and like my bread with natural flour and yeast flavors.
Once again thank you and keep us posted with your awesome recipes.

Hi Jessie, after kneading , remove from BM, shape, place in tin and proof . Bake after proofing. Just one proofing. You must achieve window pane stage when kneading. Secondly, storing bread properly affects texture. I had readers who tried this and confirmed it stayed soft even at day 3. So do try again 🙂

Jessie (May 4, 2016)

as i use the dough mode it took 1.30 hrs to knead and proof, then i took out to shape it and place into the Pullman tin, and i proof for another time. Perhaps i proofed twice that\’s why my bread is not soft and smooth

Jessie (May 4, 2016)

Wheat flour is bread flour. Or were you using gluten free bread flour? Or you mean you replace 30g bread flour with whole wheat flour? If so yes it affects . Your substitution is not big but as mentioned earlier, you must achieve window membrane stage. If you did not get this, you most likely encountered a hydration issue that needs to be adjusted accordingly

LynnC (June 15, 2016)

Hi Victoria,
I tried your killer toast recipe using Zojirushi BM. The dough did not reach window pane stage using the BM. I let the BM knead 10mins, rest 5mins, knead 15mins – in between this 15 mins of machine knead I took out the dough and check if it has reached window pane. My dough tears easily. After this, the BM stopped working and states “HOT”. So I used hand knead. I noticed that the dough sticks slightly to my unfloured hand. Is this acceptable? The more I hand knead the dough the stiffer it gets so I stopped. It was too late at night so I chuck in the fridge.- I supposed it is ok to chill the dough till next day? I baked them into 9 buns the next morning for 35mins. The crust was hard but inside was considered soft. – is it I overbaked them? How long should I bake the buns? I do not have Pullman tin. Only the BM tin. But I did not want to bake in the BM tin so I shaped into buns and proof in a baking tray. Day 2 morning when we ate the buns, the buns are drier, when I cut the bun some bread crumbs fell out, inside is abit soft but not as soft as day 1 when it was baked. Is this normal? I am searching for a bread recipe that allows bread to stay soft for 3days. Also, one which I can totally let the BM knead till window pane stage. It seems to me that my BM cannot achieve this. I wonder if this is normal? Which recipe will you recommend? Thank you for reading and replying my lengthy post.

Hi, first of all, and I have to be truthful, that the dough kneading stage did not past the test. Hence all the subsequent steps will not be right. If dough tears easily, it simply means the gluten has yet to developed which is the case. You may want to refer to some comments that has transpired before yours. You need to adjust hydration or just change your bread flour. One thing that I am baffled is that you said your dough was slightly sticky. But yet it got stiffer after kneading. It could be a case of insufficient hydration because a proper hydrated dough is very soft.

Buns need to be baked for shorter period of time on middle rack of oven but this once again depends on your oven temperature so I cannot comment what baking time works. Best is to check temp of bread using a thermometer. Your bread came apart probably becausee its overbaked resulting in dry out, or just simply insufficient hydration. In your case, I think both constitutes part of the crumbly reason. This recipe has been proven to keep soft for at least three days in dry countries like Beijing where I reside, and for some readers who stay in SG and Malaysia where climate is humid PROVIDED you reach window pane stage which was the criteria.

Do note as well that bread needs to be stored properly as well. I will suggest you still try this as other recipes may be way too hydrated for your BM to handle. You should not need to stop the BM after only 10mins of kneading. It sounds way too early for that to happen. A lot of my readers use BM to knead through and had no problem achieving a good dough.

LynnC (June 15, 2016)

Thank you for replying. I will try again. Do you think it is possible for the BM to achieve window pane stage with knead 10mins, rest 10mins, add butter and knead 10mins process? Also is it ok to let it proof till double and chill in fridge till next day then bring it to room temperature before baking? Thank you once again.

Hi, why do you need to have rest time for kneading? Is it because of your concern that your machine will burn out? If so then we have no choice but do that. I cannot comment on kneading time. Some readers told me they made it in 12 mins which I’m surprised. I take 30 mins on slow speed kneading with kitchenaid mixer.

What is your purpose of chilling the dough? Because you want to have freshly baked bread? This dough does not require chilling at all. The beauty of this is in the one proofing and then straight off to bake. Fast, but soft. But if you insist, I will place dough into fridge and let it proof there, then return to room temperature and allow to proof to the stated size then bake. I have to reiterate once again that you will need to get the level of hydration right. If you are thinking that you can achieve a soft dough through slow rising as a result of chilling, it’s not going to happen here if you still don’t achieve window pane stage. That’s the criteria.

LynnC (June 15, 2016)

Yes I am worried the machine will burn out hence the rest time. I am not sure if I can let the BM knead constantly for more than 25mins. According to the instruction book, so far their recipes has rest time and each time the kneading does not exceed 10-15mins and at most 2 knead process in each program even for manual program.
Yes, I am hoping to have ready dough to bake off in the morning as I did not want to wake up at wee hours to do the preparation work.
Today, I let the dough rise to double and send it to the fridge. However, later when j checked them they had collapsed. May I know why this is so? And can I still bring it to room temperature tomorrow morning to bake? Thank you!

Hi, Reason for collapsed is over proofing. You can still reshape and rise again before proofing. You should just let the dough rise in the fridge as per what I mentioned earlier, and not proof then chill.

If you got the dough right, you really don’t have to worry about bread that isn’t soft by day two unless you overbaked and store it improperly. There’s just too many successes with this recipe.

I do hope you consider the one proofing method in future. Happy baking

LynnC (June 21, 2016)

Hi Victoria,
I want to bake bread like yours so I tried again. My flour is 12% protein is this considered high protein flour? I use 180g (62g egg+ 118g milk) for hydration. Using the BM, 1st knead all ingredients except butter for 10mins, the dough came together nicely (do you have a picture of silky dough after first knead so I can refer to? as I am not sure if mine was silly enough next step). I rested the dough 10mins before adding softened butter and let BM knead for 20mins. The dough turned out very stretchy like chewing gum. I divided 479g dough into three, Swiss roll them and baked in a tin. The bread did not tear off like tissue paper effect/texture, mine had a lot of holes in it. Although soft inside, it felt more like kueh than cottony. Do you have any idea where I went wrong? Thank you for your time.

Ok, yes 12% is high protein flour, the lower end of high protein flour but that’s fine. U can try referring to my recent poolish Hokkaido toast. I do have a picture of silky dough after first knead . Stretchy like chewing gum sounds good but were you able to stretch the dough with both hands n see some light through? I like to make sure you did achieve the window pane stage. If so, then we know you got everything right here.

Ok on holes- this means there’s alot of trapped air bubbles in the dough . It’s crucial you press out all the air bubbles when you roll the dough out and Swiss roll it. It’s s very fine line between rolling out and deflating air bubbles at the same time yet not being too hard on the dough. A good guide to this will be if you can roll your dough out and Swiss roll two rounds (does this make sense to you?).

Texture of kueh – mmmmm… Do you mean custardy? Underbaked or did you over grease your pan? How did you proof your dough? Did it rise it till 90% height of pan?

Apologies for tardiness in reply. Somewhat your comment ends up in my spam box. I really like to help you succeed in this.

Sisca (September 7, 2016)

Hi, I’m Sisca from Surabaya, Indonesia. I’ve tried this recipe so many times, as loaf bread and as bun w/ several types of filling such as cheese, jam, chicken/beef etc. The texture is super soft indeed! I prefer this method to TZ. I shared this recipe w/ my sister and she also loves it, even w/out bread mixer.
Thank you, Victoria!

Cy (September 11, 2016)

Yes go ahead or reduce baking time. If you are making mini buns, the baking time has to be adjusted but it sounds to me your oven is quite hot. Do get an oven thermometer to confirm the temperature and that you are baking on second lowest rack

Cy (September 11, 2016)

Thanks, you are very helpful!

Rachel (September 26, 2016)

Dear Victoria, I wanted to tell you that I attempted this recipe the third time today and finally had success!! The first two tries yielded dough which was too wet. the first time, I was silly and didn’t measure my flour by weighing it. I used cups. The second time, I used 180g hydration (1 egg and milk, no whipping cream). I had to add more flour cos the dough was quite wet. The results were better than first try, but no 拉丝。Before my third try I read through your readers’ comments and this time, I used 160g hydration (figured that since I live in humid Singapore, should use less liquid) which comprised of one XL egg and whipping cream, and kneaded my dough for no more than 20 min. I used a BM btw. Dough passed windowpane test this time! Thank you so much for your recipe.

Cy (October 2, 2016)

Joanna (October 17, 2016)

Hi Victoria, I tried to knead the dough thru breadmaker but it was sticky. So I added flour when I took the dough out for kneading n put to oven to bake.
But the bread turned out fine but the next day it was hard like stone.
May I know how to keep the bread soft for the next few days?

Joanna, it sounds to me you either added too much flour or overbaked. Adjust your hydration level instead of adding flour as this is known to result in a dense bread. Also check internal temperature of bread to ensure it’s 96 degrees C before removing. All ovens have different hot spot. So make sure you know yours. The ideal killer toast is not rock hard by day two even with normal storage in bread bin. Do try the recipe according to my suggestion.

Yi Xuan (October 20, 2016)

Hi Victoria. I baked this yesterday into pull apart buns at 170 degree for 20 minutes. I realize the top of the buns turned very hard and dried. Can I know how to prevent it? What went wrong with my buns?

Hi, first please Ensure it is non fan mode. If you have an oven thermometer, please check temp of oven. Was ur bread very dry next day? If yes it means your bread is over baked and just need a shorter time. Tent bread halfway through baking time to prevent over browning if needed. Internal temp of buns should not exceed 96 degrees C (presumably you used my recipe to the T) when cooked.

Wong Chooi Chooi (October 26, 2016)

Hi, that’s great to know! With proper storage, the texture can keep well up to four days. Apologies but I think pics can be pasted here (system doesn’t support or I haven’t figured out) but do post in Facebook and share my link if you loved this recipe. Thanks much!

Wong Chooi Chooi (October 27, 2016)

g26luck (January 1, 2017)

I am planning to do this for my toddler. And thinking to reduce salt and sugar but afraid will affect the result. Can you advice me on the min sugar n salt that I can use it this recipe. Thank you so much.

Usa (February 6, 2017)

Jane (February 19, 2017)

Hi dear..

Thanks for the recipe. I have baked it twice and adapted it to make 8 small pullapart buns in a load tin instead. First time i overbaked and was pretty upset and today i readjusted the timing and added cheddar cheese to make it into a cheesy loaf.. absolutely love your recipe and it is simple steps.

However, i seems to hand knead very long before i get close to window pane stage. Today was close to an hour for me.. is it i am kneading it wrongly? This is the first time i use hand knead all the way..

Also, your step mentioned to knead all ingredients except butter until silky and elastic. Does that mean just well combined?

Hi Jane, kudos on hand kneading and no I’m not surprised if it took you an hour. Some people take 30 mins to knead it to the right consistency on a machines, least to say manually.

With re kneading till silky before addition of butter,it isn’t just well combined. Sometimes well combines means a very rough dough which is not what it should be. Your dough is literally elastic and silky before adding butter

Cherry (March 4, 2017)

When baking, pls use all ingredients at room temp unless stated otherwise. It is crucial for you to understand the meaning of room temp if you are new to baking so you may like to Google and check on definition of “room temperature”. Hope this helps

Ling (March 21, 2017)

Made some sausage buns using this recipe last night. Hydration was egg + whipping cream = 180g. The dough was very oily (didn’t add butter) and a tad dry. I was too tired to add moisture and so expected some dry buns. Baked the buns at 190 degrees celsius for 10 minutes. Came out rather hard but softened upon cooling. They were surprisingly fragrant and tasty albeit a bit dry. Wonder if the moisture part would improve if I used all milk instead. But this is a keeper! One proof and no tangzhong! Thank you for sharing, Victoria!

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Natasha (November 30, 2017)

Hi Victoria, thank you so much for the recipe! I just tried it out and I ended up with quite a hard and thick but crispy crust. The insides r really soft tho!! It’s the very first time I tried making bread with my kitchenaid mixer, so I hoped I got it all right. But I didn’t have a loaf pan as deep as yours, so I proofed mine till the tops kind of peeked out from the top of my bread pan. Do u think the resulting crust is due to not having proofed enough? Or the oven being too hot? Sorry for such a long post… at about 12mins into baking, the tops of the bread were completely brown already so I tented it with foil as advised. I used fan oven setting on 170 degrees Celsius and my thermometer also read 170 degrees, so I’m not quite sure what it is… still the taste is really good, so thank u so much!! I wish I could show u the pictures I took!

Justuna (July 9, 2018)

Cecilia (October 23, 2018)

Frances (February 8, 2019)

Hi Victoria,
Just want to know how Long do u knead the dough in the mixer roughly? I asked this because, I can achieve window pane at 10 mins, particularly after resting for about 2 mins. But I’m not sure about this, as some recipe required 20 mins so as to achieve window pane. And some recipes states that 20 mins will cause the gluten strang to be torn. What are your thoughts? Thank you!

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